Hanging

Hangings such as this one were often used to decorate the interior of palaces and tents at the Ottoman court. Ottoman velvets are known for their intense colours and bold, striking patterns. The motifs are vegetal, floral, geometric, and cosmic, with considerable variations, predominately red and often combined with gold and silver, as in this case.

Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent’s accession to the throne marked a new period of experimentation in Ottoman art, leading into the so-called ‘Classical period’. The main influences come from the miniaturist painter Kara Memi, a court artist. He was the driving force behind a highly dynamic floral style, with a new stylised floral vocabulary appearing in ceramics and then in textiles. Turkish flowers – carnations, tulips, roses, and hyacinths – are one of the recurring elements and a symbol of Ottoman aesthetics, particularly in the second half of the sixteenth century.